Is Honey Locust Good Firewood? Heat, Splitting, and Seasoning

Honey locust is excellent firewood. It produces high heat, burns relatively slowly, makes excellent coals, and creates little smoke or sparking when properly seasoned. At approximately 26.7 million BTUs per dry cord, it ranks alongside some of the better North American hardwoods.

It is also generally easier to split than its density might suggest. The biggest disadvantage is often processing the tree itself: wild honey locust can be covered in large, branched thorns capable of causing serious puncture wounds and damaging tyres.

Honey Locust Firewood at a Glance

How Much Heat Does Honey Locust Produce?

Utah State University Extension lists honey locust at approximately 26.7 million BTUs per dry cord. That is substantially more heat than hackberry at 21.2 million BTUs, white ash at 24.2 million, and red oak at 24.6 million.

It is close to apple at 27 million and black locust at 27.9 million, although it falls below white oak at 29.1 million. A dry cord is listed at about 3,832 pounds, reflecting the wood’s high density.

That combination of density and heat output makes honey locust particularly useful during cold weather. It delivers more heat per unit of stacked volume than most commonly available firewood and does not need to be reloaded as frequently as lighter woods.

How Honey Locust Burns

Properly seasoned honey locust burns hot and steadily while producing excellent coals. The strong coal bed helps maintain heat after the flames subside and makes it useful in wood stoves where longer burn cycles are desirable.

Utah State rates it as producing low smoke and few sparks. It is therefore suitable for wood stoves, fireplaces, and outdoor fires, although every open fireplace should still have a screen.

Low smoke is not automatic, however. Wet wood of any species will smoke, waste heat evaporating water, and increase creosote formation. The condition of the wood and the way the fire is operated matter more than the species alone.

Splitting and Seasoning Honey Locust

Despite its hardness and density, honey locust is generally rated easy to split. Straight trunk rounds often separate cleanly, while crotches, knots, and twisted sections can still require a hydraulic splitter.

The old claim that honey locust is difficult to split simply because it is a hardwood is misleading. Hardwood is a botanical classification, not a reliable measure of splitting difficulty. Grain direction and the number of knots matter far more.

Because honey locust is dense, plan on giving split firewood about a year to season. Large pieces or stacks in damp, shaded locations may take longer. Rather than relying only on the calendar, test the center of a freshly split piece with a moisture meter.

The EPA recommends a moisture content below 20 percent. Stack the wood outdoors, raise it off the soil, cover only the top, and leave the sides exposed to moving air.

The Main Problem: Honey Locust Thorns

Wild honey locust (Gleditsia triacanthos) may carry clusters of hard, branched thorns on its trunk and limbs. Some can grow several inches long, while exceptional thorns may approach a foot. They can puncture gloves, boots, skin, and equipment tires.

Take time to remove or avoid the thorns before bucking and splitting the tree. Wear sturdy gloves, boots, eye protection, and chainsaw protection, and keep vehicles away from fallen branches. Do not assume every honey locust will be armed: thornless cultivars are widely planted as street and shade trees.

The wood itself is durable and resistant to decay when in contact with soil, according to the USDA Forest Service. Even so, firewood should still be stored off the ground so it dries properly and remains clean.

How to Identify Honey Locust

Honey locust is native to central and eastern North America. It has also been planted widely outside its natural range.

Look for these features:

• Large, often branched thorns on wild trees
• Alternate compound leaves made up of many small oval leaflets
• Leaves that may be divided once or twice
• Flat, dark-brown seedpods generally 8 to 16 inches long
• Gray-brown bark divided into narrow ridges that may peel in strips
• Yellowish sapwood surrounding reddish-brown heartwood

Honey locust and black locust are different trees. Honey locust belongs to the genus Gleditsia and is known for long pods and large branched thorns. Black locust belongs to Robinia, has shorter paired spines, and produces showy clusters of white flowers. As firewood, black locust is slightly hotter but generally harder to split.

Is Honey Locust Worth Burning?

Absolutely. Honey locust combines high heat output with slow burning, excellent coals, low smoke, few sparks, and generally easy splitting. It is among the better firewoods available in North America and is suitable for serious winter heating as well as fireplaces and outdoor fires.

Handle thorny trees carefully and give the dense wood enough time to reach less than 20 percent moisture. Once dry, honey locust is premium firewood and well worth adding to the stack.